Are companies going to marginalize the importance of the HR functions and how will the employees deal with having more HR generalist?

Human Resources is starting to change from the traditional HR manager doling out advice to the leaders to a model that is more technologically based.  The article discussing key trends in human capital mentions that analytics are becoming an expansive part of the Human Resource equation.  These analytics are being used as a predictive indicator, which helps companies understand what will happen in the future.  In other business arenas, there is more data available now than any point in the past and companies figure out a way to capitalize on that information.  Companies are now asking the Human Resource Department to use that data to benefit the organization.  There is some hesitancy for HR team members to share this data with the rest of the organization.  Their idea was that everyone would not be able to comprehend the data.  The data is only good if it gives you an accurate depiction of what is happening with employees.  Also, the data must be able to explain why things are happening and how often they are happening.  Part of the technology enhancements include improving the company networks and changing HR into a consultant function.  The software is designed to meet the HR needs but needs to be interpreted by someone such as a HR Generalist.  This eliminates the need for the HR Specialist.  I understand how all this intertwines with the current business environment but I wonder how the people in HR feel about these changes.  Are companies going to marginalize the importance of the HR functions and how will the employees deal with having more HR generalist?  The article is very practical and explains what the future of HR looks like but was it written by an HR advocate?  The article read like it was written by someone outside of the business unit but with a deep understanding of the department’s functions.  I guess these changes fall in line of doing more with the same.